Ink and Shadows(Secret, Book, & Scone Society #4)(20)

“Yeah. On Tuesday,” Nora said. “I dropped by Soothe with coffee. Bren was barely awake and didn’t say a word, but Celeste was totally fine. She told me that she expects people to be suspicious of her products and looks forward to educating them. I wish I could be as relaxed as she is about all of this. I envy her.”

Hester put her phone on the counter. “She’s probably not relaxed now. Look.”

Nora examined the image on the phone screen. It took her a moment to understand that she was looking at the angel in front of Celeste’s store. Someone—she assumed it wasn’t Celeste—had put a plastic devil mask over the angel’s face and taped a plastic pitchfork to her marble robe.

“Jasper’s at Soothe now, talking to Celeste,” Hester said. “I told him to meet me here when he’s done. Do you think one of those women did this?”

“Seems more like a kid’s prank.” Nora pointed at the photo. “This stuff is for sale at the dollar store. Anyone with a couple of bucks could have bought it.”

Hester passed a finger over her screen. “Tell me if you still think that after you see the Red Bird sign.”

The second photograph was a close-up shot of the cardinal on the gift shop’s sign, which had been carved and painted by a local Cherokee woodworker. A graffiti artist had given the bird a pair of black horns and a pointy beard.

“It’s permanent marker.” Hester’s voice was tight with anger. “Marie is really upset. I’m upset. First, the article. Now, they’re marking places with a devil. Wow. Just wow.”

Nora pushed the phone away. She didn’t want to look at the marred bird for another second.

“If the devils are a product of that stupid article, then I’ll be getting one too.”

Nora remembered the day she’d come to work to find that someone had thrown a brick through her display window. The jagged hole in the glass had felt like a gut punch.

Though the damage had been repaired, it had been harder for Nora to let go of the feeling that she’d been violated. Miracle Books meant everything to Nora Pennington, and an attack on her bookstore was an attack against her. It had physically hurt to see the shattered window and ruined books. And it looked like it might be happening again.

“I’ll kill anyone who screws with my shop,” Nora growled.

Hester touched Nora’s hand. “It won’t come to that. Deputy Fuentes scheduled patrols to drive by your store all weekend. He’s in charge until McCabe comes back.”

“That’s a start,” Nora said, laying a piece of copier paper on the counter. She uncapped a black marker and began writing. A minute later, she showed Hester the finished product.

SMILE! YOU’RE ON CAMERA!

Hester frowned. “But you don’t have a security system.”

“No one else needs to know that,” Nora hissed.

Deputy Andrews entered the shop. When he paused to hold the door for the cookbook enthusiast who carried a bagful of books in each hand, Nora asked Hester why she was in her party dress when her boyfriend was in uniform.

Hester presented Nora with a leaf-shaped cookie. “I was hoping you’d be my date tonight.”

“As long as you’re open to threesomes, then yes.”

Andrews strode up to the counter. “Everything okay here? Any sign of mischief?”

“Everything’s fine,” Nora said, trying not to smile. With his boyish face and long, lean frame, it was easy to forget that Andrews was an officer of the law.

Nora spotted a teenage girl taking selfies near the bookmark spinner. Selfies were one thing. Selfies with dripping ice cream cones were another.

“Please take your ice cream outside,” Nora called out. The girl jumped in surprise. She then rolled her eyes in disgust and flounced out of the shop. Nora turned back to Andrews. “How’s Celeste?”

“Worried. Not about the devil mask. About her daughter.” Andrews lowered his voice. “Bren left the store at lunchtime and never came back. She hasn’t replied to calls or texts and Ms. Leopold thinks she could be in trouble.”

“What kind of trouble?” Nora asked.

“Ms. Leopold didn’t specify. All she’d say is that she moved here to get her daughter away from a bad influence. The thing is, Bren’s twenty. She’s an adult. With this festival crowd, those of us on duty are already stretched thin.” Andrews put a hand on Hester’s arm. “Text me if you see Bren tonight, okay? If nothing else, I can put a mama’s mind at ease.”

Nora looked at Hester. “Should we ask Celeste to join us?”

Andrews answered before Hester could. “That’s nice of you, but after she closes the shop, Celeste is staying in her apartment. She wants to try Bren on the phone again. We’ll keep an eye on the bookshop, so you and Hester should go have fun. That’s my official recommendation.”

Andrews smiled at Nora, gave Hester a quick kiss, and left.

When the last customer had gone, Hester helped Sheldon clean up the ticket agent’s booth while Nora shelved strays and straightened the table displays. She printed out the day’s totals, locked the cash in the stockroom safe, and turned off the lights.

“I’ll vacuum tomorrow,” she told her friends. “I hear a cheeseburger calling my name.”

The line for burgers was long, but the sound of live music and the jovial atmosphere made the wait easy to bear. June sent a text saying that she was in line for beer and that she’d trade a local brew for a fried green tomato burger if anyone was willing to buy her one.